


The Good Kind of Misunderstandings

by Shatterpath



Category: CSI: Miami
Genre: F/F, Femslash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-11-21
Updated: 2009-11-21
Packaged: 2017-10-26 08:48:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,008
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/281060
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shatterpath/pseuds/Shatterpath
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A desperate request for help leads to amusing and sexy hijinks.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Good Kind of Misunderstandings

**Author's Note:**

> SPOILER WARNING for the 5th season finale!

++ Natalia ++

It's not the door being opened that startles me, but the clattering racket of it. Normally, everyone treats the evidence lockup with decorum. My eyebrows do a scramble towards my hairline when I turn to see Calleigh, of all people, skidding around the metal gate and slamming it closed. "Oh God, Natalia," she pants, her voice tense. "I need your help!"

A little worried, I nod. "Anything, you know that." Amusement mixes with my curiosity as she minces over like a nervous cat, still completely and thoroughly unnerved by something. Since her body language isn't fearful exactly, my worry remains secondary and I lay both hands on Calleigh's shoulders, stilling her. "What's bothering you?"

Okay, now she looks embarrassed. "I… I inadvertently encouraged Jake and now I'm regretting it."

Ah, now I'm beginning to see what she's driving at. "And his recent brush with death is making him brave?"

"Yes!" She practically wails and I really shouldn't be quite so amused at this.

Then suddenly, the elevator chimes and Calleigh stiffens. Sure enough, a moment later, a vaguely familiar male voice calls into the cavernous space, "hey baby! Big Jake's here to take all your troubles away!"

Oh brother…

"You have some seriously lousy taste in men," I mutter to Calleigh before I can think to stop myself. "And I have won awards in that department, believe me." Since she knows my history with Nick, everybody does, she follows my train of thought for now.

"Come on, Cal, don't be coy!"

Okay, that does it. Playboy is in for a shock now. "What a jerk," I grumble with my voice still soft and Calleigh nods faintly. "Do you trust me?" A stronger nod, her eyes riveted on my face. It's kind of cool to play hero for this strong woman, a role I never would have seen myself in. "Play along."

I'm out of my mind, sure, but I bet this will work.

++ Calleigh ++

What was I thinking?!? I remember what Jake is like! What is it with me and these potentially dangerous idiots? Right now, I just need to get away from Jake, as well as this sudden, bizarre draw to Eric of all people. The only ones I can turn to are Alexx and Natalia and the former is too damn happy with her man. So I sprint for my tall buddy, hoping against hope that she can help bail me out of this screwed up situation.

Why this is flustering me quite this badly is a mystery, but I think that I can chalk it up to a really rough year. Ironically, Natalia is one of the few things that has remained a stable presence in my life. So, here I am, feeling like a frightened dog, begging her favorite human for reassurance and a means to make it all better.

Best of all, she's not mocking me or making me feel worse.

Then Jake's flirtatious voice wafts through the crowded evidence lockup and I'm surprised at how I cringe away, nearly pressing into Natalia's taller frame. Then… then she asks me if I trust her. Instinctively I nod with conviction. In the time I've spent with her, she has more than earned my trust.

Even as Jake approaches, I feel one of Natalia's hands skim over my shoulder and cup the back of my head. Her fond, exasperated look makes me smile helplessly, even as I figure out what the hell she's about to do.

The first gentle touch of her lips to mine is startling contrast to my past, the lush, soft texture a thrill that pretty much closes my eyes and makes me concentrate. This chaste little touch won't convince anyone of anything, particularly with my arms just hanging here, so now it's my turn to make this look authentic. Going with instinct, glad that she's taller than I and at least that's familiar, I slide one hand to her waist, the other up her back, completely entranced with how different she feels against my nerves.

While I'm not generally the bossy type during lovemaking and all the physical push and pull that leads to it, this time I step up on the balls of my feet a bit and tilt my head encouragingly. There's a pause, the metal gate squeaking, Jake's voice speaking, my brain and body suddenly wondering why maybe I don't want this to be just an act, and Natalia softens with a sigh.

The kiss turns intimate and lovely for an endless moment that I will never forget.

++ Natalia ++

The last damn thing I expected was for Calleigh to go all friendly on me like this! Well, that and how it makes me react. I guess a kiss really is just a kiss, because this feels really good. With that mouth full and luscious, Calleigh coaxes at me to kiss her for real, my body responding even as my brain is trying to figure what the hell is going on.

For an endless moment, Jake isn't standing right there, his noises gone silent, we're not in the evidence lockup, we're not doing something completely out of character. We're just this perfect, soft, wet kiss and something has altered forever.

"The fuck," mutterers the completely unwelcome male voice and I jerk my head back to stare with completely unfeigned hatred at him. Later, I'll be surprised at my vehemence, but Jake actually takes a step back.

He takes a step back…

Damn. I didn't know I had it in me.

In the corner of my eye I see the golden head turn to look at this stupid man, his expression warring shock and confusion. It serves him right for upsetting Calleigh. "Can I help you?" I enjoy snarling archly at him, just to twist the knife before reluctantly allowing a space between Calleigh and me for the sake of whatever decorum is possible in this situation.

Jake, the little Christian Slater wannabe, I think meanly to myself, is shaking his head like a wet, puzzled dog and backing out of the room. "No, no," he mumbles, waving lamely, "I gotta go."

And sprints for the elevator.

We girls remain standing quietly in our half-embrace until the elevator doors swoosh open and closed once more. Only then do I give in to the laughter that has been tickling in my throat.

++ Calleigh ++

Honestly, I feel no less baffled than Jake at the events of the last minute or so. Then Natalia startles me away from staring after my ex with a strangled sound. When she half doubles over and starts cracking up, I smile helplessly at the absurdity of it all.

"The look on his face," she squeals in total hysterics, leaning on the table and my own sense of humor overrides any other reaction for the moment. Soon, we are both howling with laughter and whole corners of my personality feel as though I've taken a shop vac to them.

Weak with exhaustion, I slump into the chair and begin to wind down. There are three more rounds triggered off by simple eye contact with this treasured friend before we're simply to worn out to laugh anymore. "God, that was fun," I observe nonchalantly, staring at the ceiling, draped limply all over the chair. Natalia only manages a strangled sound that nearly sets us off once again.

"You owe me at least dinner for that, you hussy," she sasses back and I giggle once more.

"Deal," I agree easily and manage to climb to rubbery legs. Slightly startled by the intimacy, Natalia accepts my full-bodied hug and I cling to her for a very long moment. With my nose tucked into the curve of her neck and shoulder, the starched collar of her lab coat rasping my skin, I feel very safe and oddly happy. "Thank you so much; for everything."

Her breath is warm on my skin, and I feel her smile where her cheek is pressed against my neck. Relaxed and languorous from the laughing jag, I feel as though I could stay here forever, snuggled happily to her.

My life before coming to her feels very unreal; exactly the opposite of what I would have thought. At the speed of thought I review my life from the present and work back. Is there more to this than just what's on the surface? Could I need someone like her?

Of all the times for a sexual identity crisis…

Reluctantly, I pull away only enough for Natalia to raise her head up and our eyes to meet.

My conflict, both good and bad, is reflected in the darkness of her earthy eyes.

++ Natalia ++

Has Calleigh always been this expressive and I just didn't notice? No, I don't believe that, as the woman has always been very self-contained and controlled. Something about our impulsive kiss, followed by the laughter, has broken something loose inside of her as surely as it has done to me.

A hand on my cheek startles me, but I don't pull away, too caught up in the green eyes gone hazel in the artificial light. Those captivating eyes flicker from my own enraptured gaze, to where I can feel her curious touch smooth over my cheek before curling around the back of my skull.

Bet I know where this is going…

The first kiss was impulsive and completely unexpected by all parties involved. Remembering the look on Jake's face makes me smother down the completely inappropriate urge to start giggling again. This time, there is warning and all parties at least seem to be consenting. Closing my eyes and allowing Calleigh to control this interaction and our lips remember taste and texture. This kiss is more intimate, if almost as brief.

Still in awe over the feel of her, I stare at the green eyes and wallow in the brush of her fingers on my chin. "Dinner then," Calleigh squeaks, her accent gone thick. "Find you when shift's over?"

All I can do is nod silently, still shell shocked, and watch her step away. At the open metal gate, Calleigh pauses and fires me a loaded glance that floors me even more, and then she's gone. I'm left with what I started, a crowded room full of physical evidence and me alone in the quiet. Except that my cheeks are still wet with tears, my neat appearance is rumpled and my flesh is tingling aware of the feel and taste of my friend.

Whoo boy…

With the ruthless efficiency that an abusive life taught me, I shove down all the roiling emotions and persistent internal questions so that I can finish my day efficiently.

It works until I visit Alexx in the morgue.

The discussion starts out completely work related, but I eventually become aware of the woman's curious amusement at where her eyes keep straying to my collarbone. I'm baffled and eventually my train of thought just runs out of gas. "What?" I finally have to ask, sheer, perverse curiosity overriding common sense.

"That's not really your color, honey," Alexx manages to respond with a straight face, though her voice is trembling with mirth. An elegant hand once more draws my attention to near my collarbone and I peer as best I can at the terrain in question.

There's a smear of color there, just at the edges of my vision and I jerk off the white lab coat in horror. Sure enough, there is a very obvious lipstick mark on my clothes.

Oh God….

++ Calleigh ++

I'm running on autopilot and I don't believe that I'm doing an even halfway decent job at that.

It started with kissing Natalia, the thought still terrifies me and makes me smile goofily, and only grew worse when I ran into Ryan; literally. Ever oblivious to problems not his own, Ryan queried me as to what was wrong with Jake. The slightly hysterical laughter I almost managed to choke down made the boy look at me like I had lost my mind.

Escaping him, I caught and dodged Eric's eyes through the glass walls, desperately seeking the tenuous safety of the locker room. The woman's restroom was thankfully empty and I stared at my reflection in horror.

Even hours later, I can clearly recollect my expression. With my ruined makeup, lipstick half kissed away and mascara giving me the appearance of a pair of shiners, my clothes just the questionable side of rumpled, how could Ryan not have commented on my appearance? After cleaning up I have returned to my day with no further incident.

Bet Eric will call me on the earlier disarray at some point.

"Calleigh?" Oh no… oh no, no, no, no; this is so much worse. "Are you all right?"

I have only a brief moment to search for something to say to Horatio as I slowly turn to face him. Anything constructive I might have concocted goes right out the window as my brain helpfully reminds me of what my impulsive desperation got me into earlier.

The thought of kissing Horatio like I did Natalia makes me choke on that damn insidious hysterical laughter. If I keep this up, they're going to send me home in a straight jacket.

"Jake seemed a little… off earlier," Horatio tells me softly, the way he might talk to a scared child. "And you look a little… disarrayed." Head characteristically tilted, he gestures with the sunglasses to a nearby empty lab and I mechanically do as he bids.

He doesn't have to wait long for an explanation as I find myself unloading the whole, sordid story.

++ Natalia ++

"Talia!" The call brings me up short and I scramble to school my features into neutrality as Eric trots up. His expression is stormy and I cannot come up with a good way to get out of a conversation I am not at all ready for. "Do you know what's up with Calleigh and Jake?"

Not trusting my voice, I shake my head, but Eric hardly notices. He's already keyed up and merely wants someone to bounce his thoughts and gossip off of.

"Earlier, that jerk just about jumped her right in the hall and she rushed off with the weirdest look on her face." Then he turns an intense look at me and I really, really wish that he'd gone to someone else with an empty ear. "There was some kind of connection there, y'know?" Now he's lost me and my expression must say as much because Eric sighs heavily, his body language even tenser. "Y'know," he exaggerates, "between me and Calleigh."

Memories of the evidence lock up flood my brain and I make a desperate attempt at decorum, but a strangled huff escapes me anyway. Wounded, Eric glowers like a surly little boy, reminding me of some of the reasons that I dumped him long ago. "Why screw up a perfectly good friendship?" comes out of my mouth in a surprisingly normal tone and he pauses to think it over.

Visibly deflating, Eric hangs his head and sighs. "Yeah, yeah, you're right. I guess I just thought… Never mind. Thanks Talia."

As he mopes off, I feel badly for him, but the boy's ego needs to be kept in better check than his good looks offer and I'm just the woman to do it. Digging the heels of my hands into my eyes for a moment only temporarily chases off the stress of the day and I draw a deep breath.

"Natalia?" Oh dammit, not Horatio too! Turning warily, I'm startled by his grin. "I'm sending Calleigh home. She's had a long day. Would you do me a favor and give her a ride?" Taken off guard by the entreaty, though the smile is a bigger shock, I nod wordlessly. "Oh, and aren’t you supposed to have Friday off? Go ahead and take tomorrow as well. I'll take care of the roster. You ladies have a nice evening."

And that's it.

++ Calleigh ++

Dinner was nice. Even the hefty chunk out of my bank balance was worth it. The bottle of fine red wine we shared back at her lovely house even better. The memories of kisses and mutual curiosity coupled with the good food and great wine was a siren song neither of us could resist.

Natalia Boa Vista is a very good kisser. I've been learning that for hours now. She's sweet and loving and just pushy enough to turn me on. In turn, I've been a better lover than I knew I was capable of, if the neighbor's dog barking at her repeated lusty cries is any indication.

"Remind me to thank Jake," Natalia suddenly pipes up and I can't help but burst out laughing.

"I thought you were still asleep," I accuse her, propping myself up on my elbows to stare down at this completely unexpected lover. Smiling lazily, she yawns and strokes tender hands over my ribs and back.

"And miss any of this lovely night? I think not. A nap was fine and look, the sun's coming up."

We cuddle as the dark rectangles of window grow bluer and bluer. Some time passes as our bodies melt heavily together, but I eventually have to say something, if nothing else to earn her lovely laughter again. "You do realize that I'm looking forward to completely messing with those boys' heads."

Sure enough, Natalia chuckles and hugs me hard. "We certainly started that trend today! I still can't believe you blurted out everything to Horatio!"

Sheepishly, I internally admit that I have trouble believing it myself. "At least he complimented my taste in women."

"He didn't."

"Not in so many words, but I can read him pretty accurately after all of these years."

"Well, he can tell me the same thing when he gets a chance, then."

"Flatterer."

"Damn straight… so to speak," Natalia's comment sets us both to giggling again and she cuddles my smaller body closer and breathes into my ear, "rest now. We'll plot our dastardly deeds later."

And we do!


End file.
